(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention lies in the field of washing or cleaning compositions. In particular, the present invention relates to dosage units for washing or cleaning compositions.
Washing or cleaning compositions are nowadays available to the consumer in various supply forms. In addition to washing powders and granules, this range also includes, for example, detergent concentrates in the form of extruded or tableted compositions. These solid, concentrated and compacted supply forms feature reduced volume per dosage unit and hence reduce the costs for packaging and transport. The washing or cleaning composition tablets, in particular, additionally satisfy the wish of the consumer for simple dosage. The corresponding compositions have been described comprehensively in the prior art. In addition to the advantages cited, compacted washing or cleaning compositions, however, also have a series of disadvantages. Tableted supply forms, in particular, owing to their high compaction, frequently feature retarded decomposition and hence retarded release of their ingredients. To solve this “conflict” between sufficient tablet hardness and short decomposition times, the patent literature discloses numerous technical solutions, and reference shall be made at this point by way of example to the use of so-called tablet disintegrants. These disintegration accelerants are added to the tablets in addition to the washing- or cleaning-active substances, but in themselves generally do not have any washing- or cleaning-active properties and in this way increase the complexity and the costs of these compositions. A further disadvantage of the tableting of active substance mixtures, especially washing- or cleaning-active substance-containing mixtures, is the inactivation of the active substances present as a result of the compacting pressure which occurs in the tableting. An inactivation of the active substances can also be effected by chemical reaction owing to the increased contact surfaces of the ingredients resulting from the tableting.
As an alternative to the above-described particulate or compacted washing or cleaning compositions, solid or liquid washing or cleaning compositions which have water-soluble or water-dispersible packaging have increasingly been described in the last few years. Like the tablets, these compositions feature simplified dosage, since they can be dosed together with the outer packaging into the washing machine or the machine dishwasher, and, on the other hand, they simultaneously also enable the formulation of liquid or pulverulent washing or cleaning compositions which feature better dissolution and more rapid activity compared to the compactates.
(2) Description of Related Art, Including Information Disclosed Under 37 C.F.R. §§ 1.97 and 1.98
For example, EP 1 314 654 A2 (Unilever) discloses a dome-shaped pouch with a receiving chamber which comprises a liquid.
WO 01/83657 A2 (Procter & Gamble), in contrast, provides pouches which comprise two particulate solids, each of which are present in fixed regions and do not mix with one another, in a receiving chamber.
In addition to the packages which have only one receiving chamber, the prior art also discloses supply forms which comprise more than one receiving chamber or more than one formulation type.
The European application EP 1 256 623 A1 (Procter & Gamble) provides a kit composed of at least two pouches with different composition and different appearance. The pouches are present separately from one another and not as a compact individual product.
A process for producing multichamber pouches by adhesive-bonding of two individual chambers is described by the international application WO 02/85736 A1 (Reckitt Benckiser).